SCRIBES DIVE INTO VIDA’S BOOK PARTY
Old friends and new books made it simple for Gina Pell to set the scene at Mourad restaurant, where she hosted a soiree to honor author Vendela Vida and her latest tome, “The Diver’s Clothes Lie Empty.”
“Vendela’s novel is set in Morocco,” Pell said. “And my sister, Lily Achatz, and I have been friends with Mourad
Lahlou since we were teenagers, so his new restaurant is the perfect spot.”
It was also the perfect place to gather a tribe of editorial types, bloggers and fellow scribes (including Michael Krasny, Emily Holt, Brock Keeling, Beth Spotswood, Lauren Goodman, Chloe Harris Hennen) and other creatives (Twitter cofounder Ev Williams; our queen of green Zem Joaquin; filmmaker Tiffany Shlain; fashion director Kelly Sparks and her husband, Medium Creative Studio director David Pescovitz).
This is the fourth novel by Vida, an award-winning author who is founding editor of the Believer and a trustee to 826 Valencia, the no-profit youth writing center co-founded by her husband, author Dave Eggers.
But it was her second book, “Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name,” which sparked her friendship with Pell.
“I met Vendela at a party when that book came out. I’d just read and loved ‘Lights,’ so I was thrilled to meet her in person,” recalled Pell. “But I unloaded such a crazy fan rhapsody on Vendela that I was embarrassed and quickly made my exit.”
When Pell returned to her Splendora offices, she shared her fan mortification moment with her staff. But a few minutes later, an e-mail popped up from Vida saying how much she’d enjoyed meeting Pell.
“I was so relieved and we’ve been friends ever since,” said Pell, with a laugh. “But I love to remind Vendela that I’m her literary stalker.”
Show of talent: For the first time in 14 years of the “Beach Blanket Babylon” Scholarship for the Arts event at Club Fugazi, producer Jo Schuman Silver had a new sort of competition on her hands: There were more judges (11) than participating student finalists (9).
The cultural cred of those judges (including S.F. Symphony maestro Michael Tilson Thomas, Grammy Award winner Tracy Chapman, Cal Shakes Artistic Director Jonathan Moscone, S.F. Opera General Director David Gockley, jazz artist Paula West, SFJazz Artistic Director Randall Kline, choreographer Val Caniparoli) is as stellar as these Bay Area seniors who, annually, dazzle the full house with their onstage talent.
And each finalist competing in the disciplines of dance, theater and voice was a winner. But only three took home the big, “BBB”-size $10K check: dancer Jessica Fry (Menlo High School), actor Gabriel Cowger (Novato High School) and vocalist Rachel Wirtz (Berean Christian High School in Walnut Creek).
“I know I say it every year, but these kids were so strong in every single category,” Schuman Silver said. “But what I really love is that, every year, some of our previous winners return to cheer on the new crop of finalists.”
Though she didn’t win the voice competition back in 2002, the scholarship’s inaugural year, Caitlin McGinty is now on deck at Club Fugazi five nights a week dressed in her Banana Carmen cast costume.
“She didn’t even win! But now Caitlin is one of the stars of our show,” marveled Schuman Silver. “I remember running after her that night and saying, ‘When you finish college, please come back and audition for us.’ ”
“Beach Blanket Babylon,” the nation’s longest-running pop-culture musical revue, is celebrating its 41st season. And Schuman Silver is dedicated to supporting young artists pursuing a career in the arts.
“‘Beach Blanket Babylon’ has become a symbol of entertainment for San Francisco,” declared Willie Brown, opening the show. “In my capacity as mayor, I relied upon ‘Beach Blanket Babylon’ as our key presentation for any diplomat or VIP, including the Queen of England. And don’t be surprised if a Caitlyn Jenner character actually shows up on this stage, because that’s what ‘BBB’ is all about — it expresses all the wonderments of this city.”